Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Capital Lending and Investment for Marijuana Businesses Act” or the “CLIMB Act”.
Capital Lending and Investment for Marijuana Businesses Act
A BILL
To amend any applicable Federal law to permit access to community development, small business, minority development, and any other public or private financial capital sources for investment in and financing of cannabis-related legitimate businesses, and to amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to create a safe harbor for national securities exchanges to list the securities of issuers that are cannabis-related legitimate businesses.
Sec. 2 Permitting access to community development, small business, minority development, and financial institution capital for investment in and financing of cannabis-related legitimate businesses and their service providers
Proscription Against Federal Agency Action— No agency of the Federal Government shall—
initiate or otherwise support bringing civil, criminal, regulatory or administrative actions that would disqualify any business person or governmental authority from holding or obtaining any charter, license, registration, or official status, from maintaining, applying for or receiving funding, appropriations, grants, contracts, or other forms of monetary or non-monetary assistance from a governmental authority, or from marketing, offering, or selling any security, banking, or insurance or other financial services product, because such business or person—
provides business assistance to a cannabis-related legitimate business or service provider; or
receives cash or other compensation for providing business assistance to a cannabis-related legitimate business or service provider which cash or other compensation is generated from or is proceeds of the business operations of a cannabis-related legitimate business or service provider.
Definitions—
Business assistance— The term business assistance means—
provision of financial services including but not by way of limitation, commercial banking, deposit-taking, trust services, capital raising, lending, brokerage, prime brokerage, securities finance services, investment banking, custody services, credit card services, money transfer services, securities underwriting and investment advisory services;
sale of insurance or surety products;
providing debt or equity capital and the receipt of dividends, interest, or distributions of that capital;
provision or accounting services;
sale, leasing, or renting of real estate;
provision of equipment, parts, substances or testing services needed to produce marijuana, hemp or extracts therefrom and to comply with the law, rules and regulations for testing in the applicable U.S. State, commonwealth, Washington, DC, Indian Tribe, or U.S. Territory;
provision of advertising or marketing services;
provision of management consulting services;
provision of legal services or compliance services;
provision of information technology, software and communications services;
provision of packaging, transportation, or other logistics services; and
underwriting, dealing, placement or public distribution of securities issued by a cannabis-related legitimate business, including the listing of any such securities on any exchange or trading venue, or any provision of services related to the foregoing.
Governmental authority— The term governmental authority means any Federal, State, municipal, national, local, tribal, or other governmental department, court, commission, board, bureau, agency, or instrumentality or political subdivision thereof, or any entity or officer exercising executive, legislative, or judicial, regulatory or adminis-trative functions of or pertaining to any government or any court, in each case, whether of the United States or a State, territory or possession thereof, a foreign sovereign entity or country or jurisdiction or the District of Columbia.
Person— The term person means an individual, a partnership, a corporation, a limited liability company, a business trust, a joint stock company, a trust, an unincorporated association, a joint venture, a governmental authority, or any other entity of whatever nature.
Sec. 3 Safe harbor for national securities exchanges
Section 6 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78f) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(m) Safe harbor for cannabis-Related legitimate businesses and service providers
“(1) Definitions—In this subsection—
“(A) Cannabis—The term cannabis has the meaning given the term marihuana in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802).
“(B) Cannabis product—The term cannabis product means any article that contains cannabis, including an article that is a concentrate, an edible, a tincture, a cannabis-infused product, or a topical.
“(C) Cannabis-related legitimate business—The term cannabis-related legitimate business means an issuer that—
“(i) initiates, engages, or participates in any business or organized activity that involves cannabis or cannabis products, including cultivating, warehousing, producing, manufacturing, processing, selling, transporting, displaying, dispensing, distributing, or purchasing cannabis or cannabis products; and
“(ii) engages in the activity described in clause (i) pursuant to a law established by a State or a political subdivision of a State, as determined by that State or political subdivision.
“(D) Market participant—The term market participant means any broker dealer, underwriter, clearing agency or clearinghouse, securities depository, credit rating agency, alternative trading system, investment adviser, self-regulatory organization, or transfer agent.
“(E) Service provider—The term service provider means—
“(i) an issuer that—
“(I) sells or otherwise provides goods or services to a cannabis-related legitimate business; or
“(II) provides any business service relating to cannabis or cannabis product, including without limitation—
“(aa) legal, compliance, or accounting services;
“(bb) sale, leasing, or renting of real estate or equipment;
“(cc) provision of parts, substances, or testing services needed to produce marijuana, hemp, or extracts therefrom and to comply with the law, rules, and regulations for testing in the applicable U.S. State, commonwealth, Washington, DC, Indian Tribe, or U.S. Territory;
“(dd) advertising or marketing services;
“(ee) management consulting services;
“(ff) information technology, software, and communications services; and
“(gg) packaging, transportation, or other logistics services; and
“(ii) is not a cannabis-related legitimate business.
“(F) State—The term State means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each of the territories and possessions of the United States.
“(2) Safe harbor—Notwithstanding section 32 of this Act, the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), or any other Federal law, it shall not be unlawful for a national securities exchange registered pursuant to subsection (a) or any market participant to have listed, list, or intend to list, or permits the trading, or facilitates the offering, listing, or trading on a national securities exchange, of the securities of a cannabis-related legitimate business or a service provider.”
Sec. 4 Effective date
This Act and the amendment made in section 2 shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.